When I recommend a beer, I always take price into consideration. And even though Love Child No. 2 costs more than $20 a bottle, I recommended this to every person I know who likes good beer. This 9.6 percent alcohol by volume wild ale was a work of brewing art. The sourness is balanced nicely with some cherry-like flavors, as well as vanilla from the oak barrels it is aged in. The funky flavors are amazing. Let’s all hope Boulevard brews a new batch in 2013 and beyond.

Black India pale ales were a style I was getting bored with in 2012. They were often good beers, but there was a sameness to them. Then came Wookey Jack, and it blew every other black IPA out of the fridge. Firestone Walker’s version uses rye, which gives a nice spicy compliment to the abundance of citrusy hops. The roasted malts that are used to produce the black color gives this beer more balance than many 8.3 percent ABV IPAs, either regular or black. An absolute treat.

Yes, this beer was named after me, but no, this is not self-promotion. Norm earned its spot on the list. Norm is a coconut-chocolate oatmeal stout. It uses a pound of coconut per gallon of liquid. It tastes like a liquid Mounds bar, but it is not too sweet that you can’t enjoy more than one glass. This is a picture-perfect dessert beer.

Framingham’s Jack’s Abby Brewing has carved a niche out for themselves by brewing nothing but lagers in an ale-dominated craft beer market. This is their interpretation of a German smoked beer, and it came out fantastic. If you like bacon, or smoked ham, this is the beer for you. The smokiness is reminiscent of smoked pork. A beer for meat lovers, but fine for vegetarians because no meat is actually used.

Hoppy beers are meant to be enjoyed fresh. Stone, to ensure that people drank their new IPA as fresh as possible, put the date the beer should be imbibed by. They released it to limited markets at a time, and when the date was hit, the beer was to be pulled off the shelf. Stone shouldn’t have worried; the Enjoy By IPA is a phenomenal imperial IPA, full of hoppy goodness. This beer flew off the shelves and I can’t wait for the next batch.

This imperial IPA is completely different than the Enjoy By IPA. While that IPA is more of citrusy hops, the Sixpoint Resin is grassy/piney hops. The Resin is brewed with a hop resin extract, and it gives the beer a big bitter punch with the first sip, but it is quickly balanced by a sweetness from the malts that keeps all of that bitterness in check. At 9.5 percent ABV, this is a big beer with big flavor.

A third IPA in a row, but again, completely different than the others, but just as good. The Meadowlark is a little more earthy than the others, with floral flavors and even a little biscuit/malt flavors. It is easy to brew a very bitter beer, but what sets this apart from almost any other IPA is the perfect balance this beer exhibits. I couldn’t get enough of this beer.

I’m a sucker for a good alt. The problem is there aren’t many available. Full Sail’s version is spot on for the style. Caramel malts gives it a pleasant sweetness, and the light floral hops gives this beer a nice dryness at the end. Definitely worth seeking out.

This is the lone imported beer on the list. It’s not that I avoid imported beers, but this year seemed particularly American-centric for me. But this was an exception. The Gulden Draak 9000 comes in at a style appropriate 10.5 percent ABV. There are a lot of spicy flavors in this – cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and even a hint of pepper. It has a little heat from the booze, but it is not a detraction at all.

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This is the newest beer on the list. I just tried it last week. It is an American brown ale/IPA hybrid. Whatever you want to call it, the hoppy flavors from the IPA and the malts from the brown ale part really work well together to make a satisfying beer. I was halfway done the bottle when I declared it the best beer Smuttynose has ever brewed and I stick by that.